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Fruits

A basket full of red tomatoes.

Maximizing Tomato Production

Based on our updated frost-free dates, most of the risk of spring frost has nearly passed, and it's time to start thinking about planting cold-sensitive vegetable crops.  Tomatoes are perhaps one of the most popular warm-loving plants in the home vegetable garden.  With their time in the...
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Apple trees in our area are in full bloom this week.  Unlike peach trees which suffered cold damage, many apple trees in central Illinois seem to have endured.

Fruit Trees and Winter Injury

Winter injury is a common problem among fruit trees grown in our area and this year’s up and down spring temperatures resulted in damage to flower buds across central Illinois.  Cold weather in some years can bring damage to many ornamental tree species as well, impacting much anticipated...
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spotted wing drosophila

Spotted Wing Drosophila

In our increasingly globalized society, invasive species have become somewhat of a way of life as we continuously intermix the world’s biota. Plants and animals from other continents tend to find their way to our landscapes and often are here for good.  As a gardener, it’s difficult to keep up...
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Blueberries offer attractive fall color as well as beauty in all other seasons.

Landscaping with Blueberries

Landscaping with edible plants is my second favorite gardening themes, next to ‘Going Native’.  Today, there are a wide variety of plants available that will, not only provide your family food, but also offer many other desirable attributes.  In addition, it reduces your carbon footprint...
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Pawpaw

Spring is a time of swelling buds and wildflowers in Illinois forests.  However, the flowering display of some plants may be overlooked if you aren’t observant.   The tiny, indiscrete flowers of pawpaw (Asimina triloba) are often unnoticed by humans since they appear in...
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Making Maple Syrup

Maple syrup is made from just one ingredient, maple sap, which magically flows from trees in late winter.  It takes specific weather conditions this time of year to create sap flow, caused by nighttime temperatures below freezing followed by daytime temperatures above freezing (ideally 20⁰F at...
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Reaping the Apple Harvest

One of the most glorious aspects of fall is bringing in the apple harvest.  Every year around harvest time I wonder when exactly to pick my apples, which raises some questions.  What does the apple maturity chart say for this variety? Has the weather this year impacted fruit quality?...
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Elderberry

The American elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) is a native shrub to Illinois and much of eastern North America.  Despite its weedy habit, often growing in natural areas and unmowed ditches, this plant has some remarkable features.  It offers both natural beauty and utility as well...
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